Baltimore Orioles Facing Pressure After Being Named Losers of Winter Meetings

The pressure is on the Baltimore Orioles to address needs after they saw rivals make big moves at the Winter Meetings.

May 13, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles pitcher Corbin Burnes (39) throws a second inning pitch against the Toronto Blue Jays at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. / Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

With the Winter Meetings now behind us, it will be interesting to see what comes about in the coming days and weeks of the offseason for teams such as the Baltimore Orioles.

They came into the offseason with a few items on their to-do list. Already in free agency, they have addressed a few of them.

In search of a power-hitting, right-handed outfielder, they agreed to a three-year, $49 million deal with Tyler O’Neill, swiping him from the rival Boston Red Sox. They also added Gary Sanchez on a one-year, $8.5 million deal to upgrade behind Adley Rutschman at catcher.

Yet, they still come away from Dallas not feeling like winners.

O’Neill, if he remains healthy, can help offset the likely loss of All-Star right fielder Anthony Santander, who remains a free agent. 

But, the biggest storyline surrounding the Orioles is what they are going to do with their pitching staff. Arguably the biggest name and best starting pitcher remaining in free agency is Corbin Burnes.

He was spectacular again in 2024 as the team’s ace after being acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers last offseason. Despite some real inconsistency with their staff, Baltimore could always rely on Burnes taking the ball and performing at a high level.

In the ALWC against the Kansas City Royals, he pitched into the ninth inning as the tough-luck loser. The Orioles were shut out 1-0 before losing Game 2, 2-1, as their offense sputtered.

Burnes has put himself in line for a massive contract, as pitchers are receiving a ton of money. Blake Snell’s deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers will pay north of $30 million annually.

Max Fried landed with their American League East rivals the New York Yankees with an eight-year deal that was record-setting for a left-handed pitcher. There is a chance the Baltimore ace tops all of those deals but plays a part in why the team feels as if they are the biggest losers of the Winter Meetings.

“On the other side, the losers of the week are the Orioles. They're not expected to compete to re-sign Burnes and they watched the Red Sox dip into their position player prospect capital for Crochet -- something the Orioles could've done. Competing for an AL East title without an ace will not be easy. The O's must find one,’ wrote Jorge Castillo of ESPN.

It is hard to argue against that selection. The team made moves, yes, but the gap between them and the Yankees has widened and the Red Sox have closed the distance with the Crochet acquisition, getting the last laugh after the O'Neill signing.

Options are drying up quickly on the pitching market. While the front office has expressed confidence in the pitching staff as currently situated, they are going to struggle to compete with the contenders in the AL without a bonafide ace of their own.

If they don’t bring back Burnes, they will need to put the full-court press on Roki Sasaki and convince him that Baltimore is the right place to begin his professional career.